Could Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles have known, when he established a trading post on a small island off the coast of Malaysia in 1819, that he was founding what would become one of the world's most important commercial centres and most unique cities?

It is fair to say that he probably did not – and yet within five years of being acquired by the British East India Company from the Sultan of Johore, the population of Singapore had swollen from just 150 to more than 10,000.

Today, Singapore stands as the principal business hub of south east Asia, and one of the most popular and distinctive tourist destinations in a region filled with travellers' favourites.

An island city-state that is today home to around four and a half million, Singapore – whose name means "Lion City" – has grown astronomically in fewer than two hundred years, and its pace shows no sign of slowing.

Singapore is a shoppers' paradise: the Orchard Road district is home not only to many international hotels, but also numerous, vast shopping centres. Most stores are open until 9 pm, and there are plenty of places to cater for every taste – although the Mustafa centre is open 24 hours all day every day.

Once the shops close, Singapore's evenings really begin.

Renowned as one of the safest places in the world, the city is packed with late-night cafes, bars and nightclubs, as well as galleries, theatres and cinemas.

There is little danger even of lone tourists running into trouble on the streets, because Singapore has an incredibly low crime rate – although this has been achieved, at least in part, through draconian and strictly-enforced laws.

Drug abuse of any sort is particularly severely punished, and foreigners are not exempt from this.

For a really unusual night-time experience, however, why not take a night safari around famous zoo, which is open until midnight.

Eschewing the concept of cages, Singapore zoo comprises a series of open enclosures, divided into distinct habitats: south east Asian rainforest, African savanna, Nepalese river valley, South American pampas and Burmese jungle.

Alternatively, Singapore has two world-class, completely floodlit golf courses, at the Jurong and Orchid country clubs, where nocturnal golfers can practice in peace.

Singapore is also hoping to establish itself as an international gambling centre to rival Las Vegas, with two vast casino-resorts planned for 2009, at Marina Bayfront and Sentosa.

Indeed, the southern island of Sentosa is already a visitors' haven, with attractions ranging from the mysterious pink dolphins, to museums and memorials dedicated to Singapore's Second World War heritage.

Just a cable car ride away from the city centre, Sentosa boasts sandy beaches and watersports, as well as some of Singapore's best five-star hotels.

The Carlsberg Sky Tower commands stunning views over the whole of Sentosa, along with other islands and Singapore itself.

But it is perhaps Singapore's people who are its most precious and distinctive asset.

The local culture is a blend of Malay, Indian, Chinese and European influences, and the main island is home to numerous ethnic quarters.

It is these friendly people, and their former colonial masters, who turned - in but a blink of history's eye – an uninhabited jungle island with no natural resources into one of the world's leading economies, its busiest port, and one of its most unparalleled experiences.